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In a concerning revelation by Maharashtra Cyber, a total of seven Advanced Persistent Threat (APT) groups have been linked to an orchestrated wave of cyber attacks targeting India’s critical infrastructure. These attacksâlaunched in the aftermath of the Pahalgam terror incidentâare believed to be part of a broader hybrid warfare campaign involving misinformation, cyber sabotage, and digital espionage.
According to a confidential report titled “Road of Sindoor”, more than 1.5 million cyber attack attempts were made against Indian systems, with just 150 being successfulâa failure rate of 99.99%. The report, compiled under a military operation of the same name, uncovers a worrying pattern of persistent cyber aggression emanating from Pakistan, Bangladesh, the Middle East, and Indonesia.
the Attack Campaign
Scale of Attacks: Over 1.5 million cyber attacks targeting Indian infrastructure.
Success Rate: Only 150 successful attacks; an extremely low breach success rate.
Perpetrators Identified: 7 major APT groups, including APT 36, Pakistan Cyber Force, Team Insane PK, and others.
Countries of Origin: Pakistan, Bangladesh, Indonesia, Morocco, and Middle Eastern nations.
Type of Cyber Threats: DDoS attacks, malware injection, GPS spoofing, website defacement, misinformation campaigns.
False Claims: Hackers falsely claimed to breach Indiaâs banking networks, disrupt the power grid, and jam satellites.
Infrastructure Targeted: Websites of airports, municipalities, telecom companies, and government bodies.
Social Media Warfare: Over 5,000 pieces of fake news and misinformation removed by Maharashtra Cyber.
Debunked Claims: No confirmed data breach at Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj International Airport or Election Commission systems.
Successful Defacements: Kulgaon Badlapur Municipal Council website and Defence Nursing College (Jalandhar) among the few confirmed cases.
Official Response: The report has been circulated to key law enforcement and intelligence agencies.
Strategic Intent: Cyber attacks appear to be part of a hybrid warfare strategy aimed at undermining public trust and national security.
Resilience: Despite the intensity of the attacks, Indian cyber defenses successfully repelled 99.99% of them.
Ceasefire Ineffectiveness: India-Pakistan ceasefire agreements have not deterred cross-border digital hostilities.
What Undercode Say:
The revelation of a massive, sustained cyber campaign post-Pahalgam terror incident shines a harsh spotlight on the increasingly digital nature of modern warfare. This isnât just about DDoS attacks or defacing municipal websites. Itâs about national resilience in the face of complex, multi-fronted digital incursions.
APT groups like APT 36 and Team Insane PK have long histories of operating with the implicit or explicit support of state actors. These operations blur the lines between government-backed cyber warfare and rogue hacktivism. The coordinated nature, diverse origin points, and hybrid tactics signal that this isnât isolated cyber crimeâitâs an undeclared war being fought online.
The volume of attacks suggests an automated infrastructure capable of scaling thousands of simultaneous attempts across different vectors. Indiaâs critical infrastructureâfrom telecoms to airports and municipal systemsâis being used as a stress-test platform for cyber readiness. The attackers may not have succeeded this time, but probing attempts like these are precursors to more advanced, more targeted future incursions.
Whatâs particularly dangerous is the hybrid strategy combining misinformation and cyber operations. By spreading fake news about hacked missiles or national blackouts, attackers aim not just to infiltrate but to destabilize, psychologically weaken, and create public distrust in government systems.
Indiaâs cybersecurity framework, especially at the state level, must continue evolving. Maharashtra Cyberâs responseâdetecting the origin, removing misinformation, and submitting classified reportsâis commendable. However, this needs to be scaled nationwide. More robust public-private cybersecurity collaborations, real-time attack response infrastructure, and public awareness campaigns are urgently needed.
APT groups often use low-success-rate brute force methods as a smokescreen for more targeted spear-phishing or supply chain intrusions. The 0.01% successful attack rate might seem negligible, but it only takes one effective breach to wreak havoc on national infrastructure.
India must treat every defacement and every fake data leak not just as a nuisance, but as a rehearsal for a larger, more critical cyber event.
Fact Checker Results
Data breach at Mumbai Airport? Officially denied, with no evidence supporting hacker claims.
Power grid shutdowns? Fake news. No verified disruption reported by energy departments.
Missile storage hacked? Completely fabricated, part of a misinformation campaign.
Prediction
As geopolitical tensions continue, cyber warfare will increasingly become a preferred battleground. These attacks are likely to become more sophisticated, moving beyond brute force to exploit zero-day vulnerabilities and social engineering tactics. India can expect a rise in stealth-based cyber operations, possibly targeting supply chains, fintech systems, and satellite communication networks.
While India has demonstrated strong cyber resilience, future conflicts will likely demand even greater coordination between cyber intelligence, private cybersecurity firms, and military-grade digital defense systems. The hybrid modelâof hacking coupled with coordinated propagandaâwill be a major threat vector moving forward.
References:
Reported By: timesofindia.indiatimes.com
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